Briarwood Juniors

At Briarwood Junior School, we teach children who are working in Key Stage 2, school years 3-6. The school is a large department of 7 classes. As well as the children who feed in from the Infant School, many children join us from other settings at this age too. We mix the classes by ability and need, ranging from wheelchair users with medical needs, to autistic children with sensory and behaviour needs and some learners who benefit from a more formal approach.

We have a strong focus on the curriculum – supporting children with the transition from Briarwood Infants and the Early Years Foundation Stage framework. We teach strands of English and Maths every morning along with a daily Phonics session using the DfE Approved “Twinkl Phonics” scheme. There is a practical, skills based afternoon curriculum including Myself, My Body, My World and My Creativity, along with RE, Science and Technology. These are all differentiated in to a sequential curriculum with Acorn, Woodland and Forest strands depending on ability levels, though our class sizes allow for a bespoke learning approach for all children within those broad areas. We also have an interventions programme to provide support for those needing extra wellbeing, behaviour or academic input.

An important part of the week is our Assembly on a Friday where we gather together to learn more about the world and different cultures, as well as celebrating great work for the week. Each class also has a school council representative – we meet termly and make decisions about our school and learn about democracy and other British Values. The minutes for these meetings are available in reception.

Our learning environments are consistently optimised to support independence, transition and clarity. All classrooms have central areas for group work, along with spaces for individual work and a choosing area where children can have reward time and learn play skills. Each class has their own outdoor space, along with central areas for communal play, which include outdoor swings, a wheelchair friendly roundabout, outdoor musical equipment and things for climbing and sliding on, improving co-ordination and balance.

Inside, we also have specialist rooms including a Sensory Integration room to help children regulate, soft play, a calm room and both a white and dark room for those children with sensory needs and visual impairments. We also have a new library with an interactive screen and books differentiated for the Acorn, Woodland and Forest cohorts.

If you would like to visit, please contact reception, and we can organise this – we are a friendly, welcoming site, where the principles of Enjoy, Engage and Learn are embedded throughout everything we do.